


Lightning Bug

by Hedgi



Category: The Flash (TV 2014)
Genre: Gen, Kidnapping, Wally's a toddler, all aboard the pain train, hella au
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-02-05
Updated: 2016-02-14
Packaged: 2018-05-18 09:14:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 10,100
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5920786
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hedgi/pseuds/Hedgi
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Months after the defeat of Zoom, Barry's main concern (aside from the odd metahuman attack) is helping Joe and Iris raise the four and a half year old Speedster Wally West, Cisco-named "Lightning Bug." And while that's hard, it's nice to have this speedster as family, not an enemy. Things are pretty easy.</p><p>Unfortunately, that doesn't last. After all, General Eiling's deal was only good for as long as their mutual enemies were still a threat.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Formatting is a pain. Sorry.

Iris shivered and wished she’d brought a jacket. It was all right for Barry and Wally—they were running around the badlands-turned-playing field at several hundred miles an hour in nice warm suits. She sighed and sat down on a rock. It was late afternoon in mid-summer, it wasn’t supposed to be chilly. In the bowl of wasteland below, Barry and her four year old nephew (“four and a HALF”) chased after each other in a mad game of tag, just blurs of white and gold lightning with the occasional flicker of color—mostly red—from their suits.

How this had become just any random Tuesday, Iris wished she knew. Better, she wished a little bit that she could warn herself from three years ago exactly how wild her life was about to get. Barry’s coma, Eddie, the Reverse Flash, her mother not being dead and then dying anyway, learning about Wally, Zoom… No. Messing with timelines, even to give warnings, that never worked out. And the worst of things seemed to be calming down for now, at any rate. Even if the price for Zoom’s defeat had been “the four year old your mother entrusted to your care now has superpowers good luck,” well, then that was how things went. And Wally was a sweet kid, shy for all of two days until he’d seen Barry sticking glow in the dark stars on the ceiling in actual constellations. After that, well, there was a reason Caitlin had referred to him as “the Duckling.” Cisco thought it was a terrible nickname, but it was accurate. Right up until that blue lightning had struck him in a final desperate showdown on the West’s back Lawn.

A streak of pale lightning—too light to be called amber, but not like Barry’s daffodil yellow—shot by and Wally grinned up at her. Iris held out a hand for a high five. Wally knew better than to use his speed in moments like this, but the impact still stung. “Hey, little Lightning Bug,” Iris smiled. “You’re getting faster and faster. You beat Uncle Barry yet?”

“No,” Wally pouted for a second, then shrugged. “But he’s got bigger legs.”   
               “He still got me in Hide and Seek.” Barry zipped up, ruffling Wally’s short, springy curls. “Beats my record by—“  
                “Seven seconds,” Wally beamed in all his gap toothed glory.  
                “Wow, that’s a lot.” It really was considering how fast Barry could run.  
                “Yep, and we’re taking a break for snacks now, but then we’re—“ Wally stopped when Barry put a hand to his ear.

“Cisco say that again? Yeah, no we’ll be right there.” He turned. “Metahuman attack. I’ve got to get to STAR Labs, I can drop you off?” His words ran together.

“Go on, run, I have my car, I’ll—“ Iris brushed hair from her face as Barry tore away. “Bring the little Lightning—Wally? Damnit, not again.”

* * *

 

Cisco managed to prevent Wally from chasing off into the heart of battle by bribing him with candy.  
                “You’ll ruin his appetite,” Caitlin had groaned, but given that Wally ate anywhere from 80-90 thousand calories a day, mostly in calorie bars, she knew she was probably wrong.  Wally chewed on another bar, this one butterscotch flavor. Barry had been slightly put out that Cisco went to the effort of making the calorie supplements taste decent only after Wally had needed them, but given the picky habits of kids, he’d decided what was important was that now there was more than “vanilla sawdust,” “cherry sawdust,” and “chocolate sawdust” to choose from. And Wally, well, no longer being hungry all the time had been huge. He’d already liked Cisco, Cisco’d made him a plushie Littlefoot and taught him how to play “the floor is made of lava” in the cortex.

Cisco was no longer allowed to teach Wally new games without Caitlin or Iris okaying it, but it wasn’t like they’d really needed those empty vials. While Cisco kept an eye on Barry’s status, Wally sat on the chair beside him, spinning around and munching his snacks.

Barry had returned, stowing his suit and downing four calorie bars when Iris finally arrived. “Wally, don’t scare me like that. You know you’re not supposed to run in public even if you are with Uncle Barry.”

“I’m sorry, Auntie Iris,” said Wally, who was not sorry at all. Iris put her hands on her hips.   
                “This is the last time, ok? If you trip in the middle of a road, you might get hurt. A car could hit you, or someone might see you.”  
                “I’m careful!” Wally protested.  
                “You’re four.”  
                “And a half,” Wally and Cisco corrected together. Cisco held up both hands as if warding off Iris’s exasperation.  
                “It’s getting close to dinner time. Grandpa Joe said we could go out for ice cream _if_ you eat all your broccoli instead of running it outside.”  
                “Aww, Iris—“ Barry said. “You know I hate broccoli.”

“I was talking to—Barry? Really?” Iris rolled her eyes.

“So that’s where he learned it from,” Caitlin murmured. Cisco grinned, holding out a hand. She pressed a five dollar bill into it, muttering to herself.

“Ok, gang, time to go, then,” Barry waved. Wally hopped down.  
                “Bye, Uncle Cisco, bye Auntie Caitlin,” Wally gave them quick speed hugs before reaching up to take Iris’s hand.  
                “Bye, Duckling,” Caitlin called as Cisco said “ Bye Lightning Bug.”  
                “’M not a duckling!” Wally shouted back.  
                “Why does no one like my nicknames?” Caitlin asked.  
                Cisco busied himself with checking on Barry’s suit.

* * *

 

Wally’s ice cream was as large as his head, and he attacked it with a spoon in each hand. At least he recognized the importance of not speed eating. The triple chocolate sundae dripped across the table, and he had a smudge of whipped cream on his nose. Iris snapped a picture before passing him a napkin. Barry had a similarly large  bowl in front of him, mint chip mixing with vanilla and oreo in a puddle of hot fudge and marshmallow goop. Iris had opted for a much more sensible single scoop of chocolate with gummy bears.  
                “It was so great Grandad, I was like whooooooosh and Uncle Barry was all Nyoooooom, and then, there was a big rock, and I _ran up_ it and I was on top and I jumped on Uncle Barry’s _back_ and he was all ‘Where’s Wally uh oh I lost him oh well, better take,’” Wally laughed too hard to finish, and tried to solve the problem by jamming his mouth full of ice cream. He coughed, but swallowed, grinning broadly. His teeth were covered in chocolate sauce. “’Better take a nap‘ and then he squished me!”  
Iris and Joe laughed, while Barry pretended indignation.  
                “I was tired! And I couldn’t find you.”  
                Giggling, Wally took another towering bite of ice cream.   
                “Thank god you too have fast metabolisms,” Iris sighed. “Or you’d never sleep.”

Joe paused mid bite of his own ice-cream, twenty five years of experience telling him that something was off, wrong.

“Joe?” Barry asked instantly, noticing the pause, lifting his head to scan the room in a heartbeat. It was empty. Even the waitstaff were gone.  
                “Barry, take Iris and Wally and—“ Joe’s low voice stopped at the door opened.  
                Barry felt himself freeze as General Eiling, a smirk on his face and a squad of armed soldiers at his back, entered.


	2. Chapter 2

Barry’s eyes flickered, lightning sparking in them, from the door to the door that lead to the back room. With Eiling’s entrance, three soldiers had filled the gap. Wally looked up, pressing closer to Iris’s side.  
“Barry, you need to run.” Joe hissed, hand dipping to his waist where he kept his service weapon. Barry  swallowed hard, nodding, but as he reached for Wally and Iris, knowing the second he used his speed there was a high chance of shooting, the familiar voice of the general rang out.

“I thought you were supposed to be smart, Allen. Run and you won’t get far.” Eiling held up a hand, and a familiar box gleamed in his palm. Barry winced at the memory of dozens of spikes piercing his suit--and he had healing, if he tried to run with Wally and Iris, what would it do to them? And Joe, he couldn’t leave Joe...Barry hesitated, and Eiling stalked over, his entourage behind him, boots clicking harshly against the floor. “Hands where I can see them, all of you, if you please. Some of my men can get a little...jumpy. You understand.”

“We have a deal,” Barry growled, shifting as best he could along the bench to shield Iris and Wally. “Remember?”

The cold smile didn’t reach Eiling’s eyes. “Yes, as a matter of fact, I do. You take on our...mutual enemies, I leave you and your team alone. That’s why I’m here.”

“Well, if you wanted a progress report, you could have emailed.” Barry clenched his hands, balling up a napkin. “I’m busy right now.”

“The last time anyone saw that gorilla was last fall.” Eiling said, disturbingly calm. “And I have it on good authority that our friend in yellow vanished over a year ago. Nice work with the look alike, though trying to fool me...not your wisest move.”

Wally tugged on Iris’s sleeve as she looked from Barry to the general and back, her dark eyes questioning and furious.  
“Auntie, who’s--”  
“Shhh,” without looking down, she wrapped an arm around him, hands still clearly visible, like a mother duck’s sheltering wing around a duckling. He wriggled, trying to get a better look, for once the sense of tension filling him with silent curiosity rather than chattering.

Barry took a breath, nervousness coursing through his veins like the lightning. “I’m doing my part, that’s the deal. The man in yellow, Grodd, Zoom. So if that’s all, my family and I--”

“Son, you’ve done your part. There hasn’t been a metahuman freak that the  police or my task force couldn’t handle in the last two months.” Again Eiling smile-smirked, and Barry felt as if he’d swallowed greased lead, his stomach heavy now with dread. The lightning in him pulsed with the urgent though of : get away, get away now! but he felt frozen in place. “Deal’s over now. I suggest you come quietly.”

Joe had been silent, sizing up the situation, but now he spoke. “Hell. No. You have no right, no legal authority or jurisdiction over--”

“You’d be surprised what I can and cannot do, Detective. Mr. Allen here stole US Military property. February 2015.”

For a moment Barry blinked in confusion, he hadn’t stolen anything, hadn’t taken anything at all from that off the books facility except for...understanding was like a literal burst of lightning jolting him, sudden pain pulsing in his fingers. “My friends aren’t _property,_ you sick son of a--”  
“Bad word,” Wally squeaked. “That one’s a quarter.”

“Cute.” Eiling glanced at Wally, and Barry shook his head hard, hoping to draw attention back to himself and away from his might-as-well-be-nephew.  
“You don’t want to do this,” he tried. “What happens with the next big threat?”  
“We’ll deal with that when it comes, if it does.” Eiling nodded to one of his men, who produced a thick black band of metal, setting it down on the table where it lay like a waiting snake.

“You can’t do this,” Iris snapped, sick of meekness. “When the papers hear about--”  
Someone pointed a gun at her, and she clamped her mouth shut. Joe looked ready to explode.  
“Then they better not hear about it, hmm?” Eiling said. “You have three seconds to put that on, Flash. Or my compatriots at STAR Labs get an order you and your friends there won’t like, and so will my men here.”

“I’m sorry,” Barry murmured, heart sinking, his mind scrabbling for a way out, any way out but finding none. In such tight quarters, and with one of those spike grenades, Barry knew he couldn’t get all three of the others to safety, and if Eiling wasn’t bluffing about-- _ Cisco, Caitlin _ ….   
And Eiling knew who they all were. There would be nothing to stop him from showing up at CCPN tomorrow, or on the West family porch, or Cisco’s apartment, or Wally’s school come september. Trembling, Barry reached for the device, a ring like collar. even touching it felt like weight, numbness in his hands.

“Leave my family alone, leave them out of this, they aren’t part of this,” he said, looking up and over at Eiling.  
The grey haired man still smirked. “I have no interest in cops or journalists, just you metahuman freaks. As long as they keep quiet about this…” he nodded, passing the spike grenade to a waiting soldier, who met Barry’s eyes without expression.. 

Joe dropped his hand, freed up his firearm, and fired a shot, striking the man who held the box in the leg. He went down hard, the spike grenade untriggered.

“Run!” the cop demanded, but Barry couldn’t. He’d been too focused on Eiling, hadn’t taken the millisecond to see Joe’s movement until after the collar had secured and the lightning had left him. He slumped, suddenly weak, but still threw himself into the fray as best he could. Another shot rang out, and another followed.

“Iris, take Wally and go,” he shouted, throwing a punch that Eiling caught easily.  
“Pathetic.” Eiling twisted his grip, sending Barry to the floor with a cry. When he caught his breath he nearly threw up. Joe was bleeding, Iris pressing her hands to the spot where a bullet had caught his arm, and Wally…

“Put me down! Put me down right now let  _ go _ let go let go!” Wally’s high voice screeched.

The four and a half year old was struggling in the grip of two soldiers, his feet kicking at superspeed too high off the ground to do any good.  
“Well, now, isn’t this a surprise?" Eiling asked mockingly. "Another one.” Barry twisted frantically, but Eiling hardly seemed to notice, hauling him upright with his arms pinned. “Take them both.”  



	3. Chapter 3

Barry stared  in horror, looking from Eiling to Wally,  dangling several feet off the ground and squirming uselessly, lightning flickering.

“No!” the cry tore from Barry’s throat. “You have me, just let him go, he’s just a kid!”   
The only acknowledgement that he’d spoken was that Wally kicked harder pale lightning sparking from his shoes, that Iris was screaming too, and the sharp blow he took to the back of the head. It wasn’t enough to do more than daze him, but it hurt. He fought, writhing against Eiling’s grip but several of the gunmen came to assist, half carrying, half dragging him outside. 

“Joe! Iris!” Barry tried to shout for help, and someone clubbed him in the stomach in answer.

The sidewalk was empty, even the road seemed clear, no one to notice or see. The two men that held Wally between them followed to a plain white van parked across the street. Metal bit into Barry’s wrists and one of his captors cuffed him, and another waiting uniform threw open the back of the van.

Pain blossomed in Barry’s skull where he smacked into the wall when the tossed him in, but he managed to cushion Wally, still wailing to high heaven. The door shut with a slam, cutting off all light.   
“Ssh, Wally. Lightning Bug, I’m right here.” Barry knew it wasn’t much in the way of comfort, and wriggled, trying to get his hand in front of him so he could loop them around the toddler, but the cuffs were too tight.

Wally’s hand, tiny and trembling, found Barry’s face as he awkwardly sat up, and he pressed close to Barry’s side. Barry  hunched forward as best he could, letting Wally wrap his chubby arms around him. His wailing had stopped, but Barry could feel him crying.  
“‘M scared, U--uncle Bar-ry. W-who’re them, wh-y’d they hurt you an’ Grandpa an’--” he sniffed. Barry felt the fear give way to rage. It had been one thing for Eiling to threaten him, to drag him off to God-alone-knew-what fate, but Wally? Sweet Wally who’d latched on to all of them and played games with Cisco and listened seriously without understanding more than half of Caitlin’s theorizing, but still nodded and patted her hand only to say, “ Ok, I think, it’s time for lunch now so maybe you should stop.” Wally, who still missed his grandmother, the only mother he’d ever known, terribly, who had nightmares about the man in black as much as Barry ever had about the man in yellow, but still grinned over pancake breakfasts. How could Eiling justify this?

“They’re very bad people,” Barry murmured, his voice low. “But it’ll be ok. All of Grandpa Joe’s friends at work? They won’t stop till they find us. And Uncle Cisco and Auntie Caitlin, “ Barry felt a twinge of panic, hoping they were alright. Hoping Joe and Iris were alright, Joe’d been shot, after all, “ and you remember Uncle Robinhood?” They’d decided it was probably safest if Wally wasn’t aware of the Arrow’s name, and since they’d first met during a disney movie marathon, the name had stuck. Felicity had refused to be Auntie Marian, though.

Wally’s chest heaved, but he nodded against Barry’s shoulder. “He’ll find us?”

“Someone will,” Barry promised. There were trackers in Wally’s shoes, after all, and if Felicity or Cisco wanted to find someone, it wasn’t a question of “if” it was a question of “when.” Still, “when” could be an issue if it wasn’t soon, but Barry didn’t want to think about that. He could still remember the way Ronnie had screamed when Eiling had taken Stein.

“Ok,” Wally nodded. “I hope it’s soon. I’m scared.”  
“I know. You’re being really brave, little bug. Now listen. I can’t run with the thing around my neck. But you can. So as soon as that door opens, I need you to run as fast as you can, as far as you can. Don’t stop until you’re in a safe place. Can you try?”

“But you?” Wally whispered.

“Just run, ok?” Barry  closed his eyes. If Eiling caught Wally running, it would be bad, but so would just waiting around for whatever was going to happen. If Wally could surprise them, get away before they reacted... “Don’t worry about me. Promise me, if you get the chance, you’ll run.”

Wally sniffed hard. “‘kay.”

 

They drove for hours, Wally clinging to Barry tightly and Barry doing his best to cling back, until slowly the van came to a halt, the engine cutting off. Barry nudged Wally who understood, though it was long past his usual bedtime and the energy from the ice cream had since wore off. He quivered, inching toward the doors. Wally glanced back to where he knew Barry was, but it was still hard to see much of anything. He pressed his ear to the door, like he did when he and Uncle Cisco and Uncle Barry played hide and seek inside STAR Labs, and heard a click. As soon as the door opened, he ran, leaping forward and sending lightning sparking.

It was a building, a huge building, and Wally skidded on the floor for a second before getting his balance back. Everything was a blur of grey and white and noise, but he kept running, looking for a door. He could hear people shouting, but just ahead there was an exist sign, and he threw himself at the door, jumping for the handle. He jumped too soon, and was too short, he missed the knob at his first try. Even as he managed to grab it and twist, he felt someone’s huge hand grabbing at his shirt, pulling him back. another set of hands lifted him high off the ground again, like how Auntie Iris and Uncle Barry would swing him between them when they crossed streets, only these people were mean and they didn’t let go. Tears formed in his eyes, he knew he needed to be brave but he was more scared now than he’d been since the blue and black monster had attacked him and Auntie Iris.

“We found it, sir,” one of them told the man who’d grabbed Uncle Barry, avoiding Wally’s flailing feet.  
“Let him go!” That was Uncle Barry. “Eiling, he’s only a kid, he’s just little. I’m what you wanted, just let him go.”

Wally kicked again as the men holding him shoved him through a door, and Barry right after him, the cuffs around his wrists unlocked. The room was very small, with clear walls and nothing in it except a floor. Wally scrambled to his feet quickly, but not fast enough before the door shut in his face.

“I don’t think so, Flash. A metahuman’s a metahuman. A freak’s a freak. And you are in no position to give me orders.” Eiling shook his head. “Sit tight. I’ll be back in the morning, and you can decide if you and your little sidekick want to cooperate or not.”   
As he left, Wally sank to the floor, his energy spent. He was tired and hungry and his feet hurt.

“I’m sorry I didn’t get away, Uncle Barry,” he whispered. Barry shook his head, pulling Wally into a tight hug.  
“It’s not your fault. You tried really hard. I’m so sorry I couldn’t get you out, Walls.”  
“Are...are they going to hurt us? Like the blue-lightning man tried to?” Wally shuddered,  pressing his face against Barry’s chest, on the verge of tears again. 

“I don’t know,” Barry murmured into Wally’s ear. “But they’ll have to go through me, first. I won’t let them hurt you.” He rocked Wally gently, shifting so that he was between the boy and the door, even if that made him feel exposed, vulnerable. Wally dozed off eventually, still trembling, but Barry did not so much as close his eyes.


	4. Chapter 4

Wally woke from his doze when he felt an unfamiliar hand on his arm.   
“No! Leave him alone! You can’t have him!” Barry clung to him in a fierce hug, and Wally squeaked as Barry pulled him free. He was stiff and cold and buried his face in Barry’s shirt, scrabbling desperately to hold on.

“What a shame,” Eiling’s voice echoed in the small, clear walled cell. “I was hoping you’d have decided to behave. Well.”

Barry stiffened, curling to protect Wally, but the grips around his shoulders were like iron, and his strength gave out. Even as four men held him back, two more of Eiling’s soldiers pried Wally from him. The toddler screeched wordlessly as the door slammed shut, cutting him off from Barry and any sense of safety.

“No! Stop! Wally!” Barry’s voice faded as they carried him, squirming with much less energy than before, down a stark corridor, into a plain room with a long row of cabinets built into the wall. It smelled like STAR Labs, but the familiar scent was no comfort.

“Lemme go,” Wally shrilled. “Lemme go, I wanna go, I want Uncle Barry!”

They sat him on a tall chair that reminded him of the bed-chair that Auntie Caitlin had at STAR Labs, but without the cushion. Wally waited about half a second and tried to climb down, but his legs wouldn’t move fast enough, and one of the people who’d carried him, a man in a white coat, pushed him back.

“Restrain it,” the other person said, her voice flat. Wally struggled as the man buckled a strap like a seatbelt around him, kicking his shin hard.

“You can’t do that. It’s against the _Law_.”

Neither of them responded, the woman pulling a tablet from a large pocket and tapping at it. Wally decided to try something different. It had helped once before, when he’d gotten stuck at STAR Labs with Auntie Caitlin and Uncle Cisco because of some other not-as-bad-but-still-bad bad people.   
“I hafta potty,” he said, scrunching his face.  
The woman’s face remained impassive, and Wally shivered. The room was cold, but her stare made it colder.

“We’ll start with the basics,” she said, looking at him but not meeting his eyes. “Where did you get _your_ speed? It’s different from the Flash’s, isn’t it?”

Wally blinked, then shook his head.  
“It’s the same?” She frowned as he shook his head again. “Answer the question.”  
“Nope,” he said with all the stubborn refusal a willful toddler could muster. “Not ‘lowed to talk about it to strangers, an’ you’re stranger an’ you’re mean.”  
“New rules. Answer my questions, or I’ll show you mean. How did you get your speed, and how does it differ from that of the Flash?”

Wally shook his head, refusing to look at her, chubby arms folded. She slapped him, and Wally’s eyes welled up with tears. He knew he _should_ be brave, but he couldn’t. He wasn’t like Uncle Barry, or Auntie Iris.

“Grandpa Joe said, can’t talk about it,” Wally whispered. “So _won’t._ ”  
“Grandpa Joe,” the woman said mockingly, “is _dead._ Now tell us what we want to know, or else.”

Wally burst into hiccuping sobs at that. They had _hurt_ him and he was hungry and he wanted to go _home_ , wanted Uncle Barry and Grandpa Joe and the rest of his family. Bad people lied, but he’d seen Grandpa Joe on the ground, so what if they were right? They had to be lying, didn’t they?

“Look what you did, Gordons,” the man snapped at the woman. “We’ll never get anything useful out of it like that.”  
She glowered, grabbing Wally’s arm hard enough to bruise. “Shut up.”

Wally did not shut up, wailing and kicking at her until she moved enough to the side that he couldn’t reach.

“Ugh. Fine. Dare you to do better. Get it set up for prelim labwork. We can learn something from blood samples at least.” She let go of Wally with a shove, stalking toward the door.

“One vial or two?”

“One for now. Thing’s tiny,” she called over her shoulder.

The man took Wally’s arm, and Wally tried to punch him away ineffectively as he first bound it to the high arm rest and then wrapped a tight strip of sticky cloth above his elbow. Wally’s crying faltered when he saw the needle. “Please, please don’t.”

He didn’t listen.

* * *

 

Barry glowered at Eiling, straining at the cuffs that locked him to the chair. Even if he’d had his powers, and a full meal, he doubted he could break them, and as weak and drained as he was he knew it was hopeless. It didn’t stop him, though.

“Flash, it really would be best if you cooperated,” Eiling said, his eyes hard. “But as I told Firestorm, I will get what I want from you eventually.”

“I’ll tell you what you want,” Barry said, cursing himself inwardly. If Eiling learned how to make more speedsters, if Eiling harnessed his powers, there was no telling what he might do, but there was no choice. Or rather, there was a choice, and Barry had to make the right one. “I’ll tell you anything. But leave Wally out of this, just let him go, you don’t have to–”

Eiling struck him in the gut with a baton and Barry gaped for air.

“Correct. I _don’t_ have to do anything I don’t want to. But if you think I’m just going to let something that valuable–”

“He’s not a thing. He’s a person. We might be changed but we’re people,” Barry ground out.

“You were. But now?” Eiling stepped in close, his bootsteps heavy. “Now, you’re mine. Let’s get that clear right now. Harrison’s Particle Accelerator is what gave you and the others these powers, isn’t it? I’m going to need details. What exactly it was that made you this,  why it made you this and not another living bomb, or part of Firestorm.”

“Not until I know Wally’s home, safe. You can have me. You can do what you want,” Barry trembled with fear at the words, the phantom cries of Ronnie echoing Stein’s pain all too easy to call to mind. But Wally had to be his priority. It was his fault. Barry closed his eyes tightly. There had to be something he could do…

The door opened, and Barry’s eyes flew open as a woman, the one who had taken Wally, murmured something to Eiling, who nodded once.

“It seems your little, what did you call him? Lightning Bug? Isn’t being terribly cooperative. For his sake, you had better be more forthcoming. Therein lies the…joy…of having two subjects. What I can’t get out of him, I can get from you. And what you refuse to tell me, well, I don’t think you need that spelled out for you, do you?”

Barry slumped. “Please. Don’t hurt him. He’s just four, please.”

“Then start talking. Your top speed, from our reports, is just under Mach two. How exactly do you manage to store enough energy to keep that pace?”

* * *

 

Barry answered as best he could repeating things he’d heard Caitlin say and trying to be vague enough to not give them anything useful while still keeping Wally safe. He didn’t know how long it took before they uncuffed him and marched him back towards the line of cells. He could see Wally in the first one, dark face wet with tears and a bandage around his arm. He was huddling on the floor, but when he heard the footsteps, he looked up, shrinking back before changing course and throwing himself at the wall.

“Uncle Barry! Uncle Barry!”

Barry dug in his heels as his escorts pulled him further, past the door to Wally’s prison and toward the next cell over. “Wally!”

They threw him into the cell and he scrabbled upright, dizzy and dazed from panic and low blood sugar. Wally looked no better, a shade too pale and almost vibrating, he was shaking so badly. He pressed against the clear barrier, and Wally did the same, staring up at him wide eyed.

“They said,” Wally hiccuped. “They said Grandpa Joe’s dead.”

Barry closed his eyes, every muscle aching with exhaustion, and willed himself not to cry. He failed.

* * *

 

“Tell me you’ve found them,” Iris said as soon as Cisco walked into the dimly lit room. “Tell me you have a plan.”

“I’m sorry,” Cisco shook his head. “But we will find them. We will, I promise. Felicity’s on it, I’ve got my own stuff going. I just came to see if… how you were doing.”

“How do you think I’m doing?” Joe grumbled from the hospital bed. “My boys are in the hands of a murderer who doesn’t even think they count as human, I had a bullet in my arm, and I can’t do a damn thing to find them.”

“We’ll get them back. We will. We’ll bring them home.” Cisco promised.

“Did you see that?” Iris asked, motioning to his head, miming a set of goggles.

“No,” Cisco admitted. “I tried looking, but I… I didn’t see. But I know it.”

His phone buzzed gently in his pocket, and he pulled it out, glancing at the screen.

“Is it Felicity?” Iris asked, hope in her voice. “Does she know where they are? What’s the plan?”

“No, it’s not…” Cisco rubbed his forehead. “I–there’s no name, not even a number to…” he typed something and the phone pinged. “No way to contact back.”

“What’s it say?” Joe asked, voice strained.

“Just… ‘On our Way’ whatever that means. No threats, though.” Cisco shook his head. “I’m going back to STAR. Caitlin shouldn’t be there alone, and there’s another program I want to run. Something’s been scrambling the tracer’s in Wally’s shoes, but I might be able to get around it. I’ll see you.”

Iris offered him a tight hug, which he returned, then took off down the hallway.

He’d lied to Iris and Joe, and Caitlin when she’d asked. He hadn’t seen anything useful, but that didn’t mean he hadn’t seen nothing.   
Like his first few vibes, he wished he could forget what he’d seen, but he knew he never would. He only hoped that his programs, or Felicity’s, or whoever had sent the text, would be able to help before it was too late. Unless it already was.


	5. Chapter 5

  
  


One of the soldiers opened Barry’s cell door a fraction, enough to push in a styrofoam cup of water and an unwrapped bar of something--it looked like one of Cisco’s calorie bars, an early version. Barry wavered, his stomach clenching, his mouth dry. It might be drugged, poisoned, but then, Eiling already had them. Still he waited, eyes flickering so slowly between the food and Wally’s cell. The man was walking away, empty handed.

“Wait,” Barry croaked, hating it. “Wait, what about Wally?”

One of the guards glanced at him. “Eat. You won’t get more.”

Barry shook his head. “Give it to him. Please, his body isn’t as used to this, he--”

“Shut up, or I’ll make you shut up,” the guard threatened.  
“Your boss won’t be happy if he goes into a hypoglycemic coma,” Barry reasoned. He could feel Wally’s eyes on him, on the water, on the food. “I told you people, 90 thousand to 120 thousand calories a day, that’s what it takes for speedsters, if you don’t believe me--” he shut up. He was weaker, more on edge than he’d thought. He’d almost told them to ask Caitlin. He couldn’t let them hurt the rest of his family. “If you don’t believe me, fine, but he’s a child, how can you starve a child?”

“‘m ok,” Wally whispered, but it was a lie and everyone knew it. The guard, almost familiar--Barry placed him, he’d been one of those sent to capture Ronnie at Jitters-- snarled, but stalked back.

“Try anything, and I’ll fry you. That collar’s not just for show, Flash. And you’re going to answer the General’s questions, no BS That’s the price. Got it?”

Barry shuddered a nod, watching as the man took the scant meal and transferred it to Wally’s prison, the water sloshing.

“But, you?” Wally had not stopped trembling, though the occasional bit of lightning glittering in his eyes or between fingers had given out.  
“It’s alright, Lightning Bug.” Barry pressed a hand against the cool, glossy surface. “You need it more.”

Wally frowned.

“Wally, please.”  
“When we go home, can we go to Big Belly Burger?”

“Yeah. Uncle Basil,” Ray had come in during The Great Mouse Detective, “will buy you every burger they’ve got.”

“And you?”  
“And me,” Barry assured him.

They left them alone for the rest of the day, though that meant little. Time meant little, Barry wasn’t sure if it had been hours or days since their capture, refusing to sleep. He was sure that if he did, he’d wake to find Wally gone. The lights never went out, in any case, and Eiling’s people, in the uniforms of soldiers or  in pale lab coats buttoned high, were never truly absent. Wally pressed tight up against the wall, and Barry’s second deepest wish, apart for Wally home and safe and not caged, was that he could hold him again, keep him safer this time.

His third wish was to have his speed back so he could shatter the door and beat Eiling to a pulp before dragging him across the bay and letting go where he’d dropped Bette. Exhaustion pulled at Barry’s limbs and eyelids, but he couldn’t sleep. not yet, not yet. Rescue was coming, it had to be.

Wally curled up, catlike, on the floor, his head as near to Barry as possible. Barry ordered himself to stay awake, to keep watch, but eventually sleep claimed him, too.   


* * *

  
Wally glared, red-eyed from crying and from sleep and from being mad, at the big man who talked so loud, who had hurt Uncle Barry and hurt--hurt Grandpa Joe. They hadn’t come into his box yet, but the man, General something-something, Eyelid maybe, was standing over Uncle Barry, asking questions.

“My team is very curious how your bodies are capable of withstanding the friction of speed, and how they’re able to handle the stress of feet pounding into the ground faster than most cars.”

Barry blinked hazily for a moment. He couldn’t very well say “ It’s the speed force,” Eiling would never buy that. He wanted answers he could replicate, useful answers not true ones. “Uh--the regeneration, the healing factor, we think it’s that, stress fractures heal quicker, and--and the suits, they protect…” he coughed, hard. “They protect us, some.”

Eiling looked to someone standing beside him, the man who had jabbed Wally with the needle the day before. He nodded.

“Certainly plausible. Some tests were run on the little one’s shoes, since they sustained no damage in its escape attempt. Pierson says she’s never seen anything like them. She tried to set them on fire, nothing.”

“Where did you get them?” Eiling asked, directing the question at Wally. Wally’s heart hammered.   
“Secret,” he whispered. He knew it was Very Important to keep as many things Secret as he could.

“Cute,” Eiling sneered. Without warning he reached down and grabbed Barry by the hair. Wally shrieked.  
“Le-go of him!”  
Eiling pulled out a gun. Wally’s eyes went even wider.  
“Tell me, right now, or else. I don’t care which one of you. Five. Four. Three.”

“Uncle Cisco,” Wally whimpered. “He maked them. Don’ hurt Uncle Barry, Please don’.”  
Eiling gave a wolf’s grin, dropping Barry in a heap. He did not put the gun away, only passed it to one of his lackies. “At least one of you’s smart. Someone, get me the engineer. I have a feeling he can be persuaded to share his designs.”

“No,” Barry hauled himself up. “You leave them alone. You leave them alone.”

“Francisco Ramon, that’s who it meant.” Eiling didn’t ask. “He build the weapons used in some domestic terror attacks. They were used to derail a train, rob a casino, set fire to parts of Central city. We should have brought him in for questioning months ago.”

“No!” Barry met Eiling’s cold gaze. “That wasn’t the deal, that wasn’t--”  
“That deal’s over, too. You have more to lose, Flash, so behave.”  
Barry lunged, caught short but the restraining arms of another soldier, swearing.  
“Good. Let’s continue, shall we? How exactly does your speed work, interacting with others. I was taken by the man in yellow, the sudden increase should have killed me. I’ve seen you run people out of the paths of bullets. So how exactly does that work? How can you interact with the world and not destroy everything and everyone you touch?  
Barry floundered, still gasping a little for air. He hung his head. “ It’s called the Speed Force. It’s what makes a speedster, it’s what does that, it--It acts like a barrier, we think, shields what I, we, interact with. And that’s why you can’t just make a speedster.”  
Eiling shook his head, slowly. 

“If that’s how you want to do this, Flash, fine. I thought maybe you’d have come to your senses, but no. Still trying to play me for a fool. Now here’s another question for you, and one I’d quite like to know the answer to. How fast exactly is that healing factor? And does it apply to more than just breaks and bruises? I think it’s time we found out.”

Barry went cold, as if he’d been shot by Snart’s gun, ice starting in his stomach, filling his lungs, as Eiling left the cell, and opened Wally’s. He couldn’t breathe.

“No--no, no, don’t touch him, you bastard don’t--”

Eiling reached for Wally, and the child did the only thing he could. He chomped down hard on the man's hand with everything he had, tasting sweat and blood and not caring. Eiling snarled, half flinging Wally into the wall, but he would not let go.

Barry cried out, lightning like blue flame sparking across the collar.

Wally dropped like a stone, and Eiling grabbed him, thrusting him at two of the lab-coated goons.

Two others dragged Barry to his knees and out into the hallway, splitting away from the others.

“Wally! No! Don’t do this, Eiling, Please,  _ Please.” _

The room was small, dim, with a large window. Barry fought, primal instinct lending him strength he no longer possessed. On the other side of the bulletproof glass, Wally kicked and shrieked as three of Eiling’s men began doing up the straps attached to the operating table.

“ _ Uncle Barry, Help! _ ” Wally wailed, squirming.

“I’ll tell you anything, God, No don’t do this, please, what do you want, take me, do what you want to me, please just don’t do this,” Barry screamed, his voice tearing his throat.  
“You had your chance, Flash,” was the only cold response.

That was when the ceiling exploded.


	6. Chapter 6

The lights in the main room went out even as Eiling turned to his men.

“Take this one back to its cell, and secure it, now.” The room shook, but maybe it was just Barry, unsteady and weak in the steel-tight grip of his captors. He fought, but the effort made the room spin–unless that was more of the  explosion, more of whatever was coming. Barry allowed himself to hope it was a rescue, hope that it was freedom. As long as whoever it was got Wally out, got him home safe, that would be enough.

They hauled him from the room as if he weighed nothing, as if he was nothing, and his struggling faded. He had nothing left to give. _Wally. Wally, hang on. please, be alright_. It was the only thought he could muster, until there was a brilliant flash of blue-white light. The man on his left let go with a cry, and Barry hit the floor hard, his vision winking out.

~~ ** * ~~

Wally whimpered as the man finished pinning him down, so tight to the table that he couldn’t move more than a little, and the woman, the same nasty woman who had yelled at him and hit him, came closer. She was holding a small knife, and Wally could hear Uncle Barry screaming. He’d know that These People weren’t like Auntie Caitlin, but this was different, this wasn’t like questions and needles in his arm. He wriggled, sobbing with fright.  
“Someone get me a gag, shut this thing–” she was cut off as the room trembled.

The ceiling exploded, and Wally screamed as the woman standing over him with a knife  was flung into a wall. Everything was bright and loud and they’d taken Uncle Barry away and he was scared, unable to move. A huge shape loomed over him, but he couldn’t tell what or who it was, his eyes blurry with tears. Metal glinted, and Wally found the breath to wail again.

“It’s alright,” a man’s voice said, huge wings like a falcon’s, or a hawk’s, spreading from his back. “It’s alright, Little one. You are safe now.” Wally hiccuped in surprise as the man drew out a knife, flinching away. The man worked quickly, cutting away the thick straps, then scooping him up the way Uncle Barry did, cradling him against his chest. The wings folded in around him like a blanket, blocking out the light, but it was a comforting darkness. He sniffed, trembling, and the voice said again, cutting through the horrible other sounds, “You are safe.”

Carter wondered if this was how he had held Aldus, three, four lifetimes before, if he had held other children like this, his heartbeat under their ears. He hoped so; as much as he longed to join in the fray about him, his duty had been made plain as soon as Chay-ara–Kendra had smashed her mace into the white-coated-woman’s shoulder and then her face. His beloved’s strength had always come from protecting, herself or others. Sparks of memory washed through him of another fight, a child silent in a motel closet. But this was not that night, and these…he hesitated to think of them as anything but monsters…were not immortal. Sara proved that.

“Sara,” Kendra warned, binding her bleeding captive. “You know West wanted them alive to face justice.”

“This is justice. Can you say they don’t deserve it?” But Sara sheathed her knife, hatred in her eyes. “How’s the kid?”

Carter unfolded his wings. Wally stiffened, but the room was empty now of any but the four of them and the unconscious or dead. Sara went scouting.

Kendra moved in, but stopped when she saw Wally flinch. Slowly, she removed her helmet.

“We’re not going to hurt you. It’s ok.”  
“Are you angels?” he asked, his voice low. “Please, you gotta save Uncle Barry, you gotta, they’re gonna–they were gonna…” fresh tears spilled down his cheeks.

“The rest of the team is getting him now,” she assured him.

“Promise?”

“I promise. We’re gonna take you home now, ok?” Kendra asked gently.

Sara poked her head back in. “We got more company. Get him out of here, fast. I think Firestorm wants to burn this place to the ground, and I’m not gonna stop them.”

“Have you ever flown before?” Kendra asked Wally. “It’ll be fun, c’mon.”  
“No, can’t leave Uncle Barry,” Wally managed, still hiccuping, but Carter shushed him with more warmth than Kendra might have expected.

“He’ll be fine, little one.” He took off, Wally clinging to him, and Kendra followed, into the brightness that lay beyond the ceiling.

~~ * * *~~

Barry’s eyes flickered open as someone lifted him up, hands under his arms, but strangely gentle.

“You with us, Scarlet?” Barry knew he was dead, then, because that was Snart, that was Captain Cold, being–nice? “We didn’t come all this way for you to wimp out on us now, Flash, so–there you go. on your feet. You got this.”

“Whaa?” Barry slurred, still dizzy. He swayed, a blessedly solid figure steadied him.

“No one’s allowed to fight you but us,” Mick Rory said. “Well, and those other nyoomy ones. But only cuz we had other shit to deal with. Let’s go.”

“Wally. They have–they have Wal–”  
“Not anymore they don’t. The Hawks and the songbird got him. If any of them are still breathing.” Lent’s voice was venomously cold.  
“No fair,” Mick grumbled. “I wanna kill some of these bastards. They can fry here and fry down there, too. Takin’ a kid.”  
“You’re about to get the chance,” Len said, eyeing the passageway and the half dozen armed soldiers.  He pitched his voice to carry“Unless they wanna think real hard about what they were party too and just surrender.” No one moved.  
“Sorry Barry,” Len said, sounding anything but. “ But our no killing deal’s suspended for now.”  
Barry still swayed, thirst burning his throat. He could still hear Wally’s screams, picture Joe bleeding out. Words failed him, but he nodded. They’d had their chance to do what was right. This wasn’t innocent guards murdered in cold blood without a chance.

Mick hefted his flamethrower high and fired.

~~~* * * * ~~~~  
Eiling was not  stupid man. He’d known what the explosion meant, and had made for the secure room that housed the comms–an attack had to be reported, a counter attack coordinated. Plus, he had a notion of who was behind this, and that called for very specific weaponry.  
A young man with his head and hands on fire cut him off on his way down the second hallway.

“Hello, General. Remember me?” The voice was unfamiliar, but that meant nothing.  
“Firestorm,” Eiling’s lip curled as he reached for his gun. “How good of you to spare me the trouble of hunting you down.”  
“Funny, Grey says the same thing.” Jax spat, throwing a fireball. Eiling apparently hadn’t been expecting it, he dodged quickly but not enough, and the flames scorched his right side. He dropped the gun, and Firestorm hurled another blast, melting it. Eiling’s eyes went wide, though he did not shake.

“If you think you’ll get out of this alive,” Eiling laughed, “you or any of your friends, then I have news for you, Professor. Though perhaps I’ll let you live long enough to see what your work will do for my soldiers. Your latest host, well, we’ll see how long he holds out.” He held up his hand, the gleaming blue ion grenade seeming to pulse in the flickering light. He flung it, and Jax felt his head bursting with Martin’s inward cry as fire streamed from his–their–hands. It caught the grenade, reducing it to cinders, no–not reducing. Changing. Altering it until it was soil, like the stuff Jax’s mom put in the windowboxes. Eiling gaped.  
Jax took a step forward, though it was Martin who formed the flaming fist and knocked Eiling cold with a blow to his chin. The smell of singed flesh made Jax want to throw up a little.  
“That was satisfying,” Martin said from within Jax’s mind. “Now let’s burn this place.”  
“Damn, Grey,” was all Jax could say. “I thought Heatwave was the pyro on the team.”

“I will not allow any of my research, or anything that this…man.. has collected on metahumans to be used so perversely. There are things that perhaps I should have told you. This is not the first time I have met…him.”  
“I figured.”  
“He nearly kidnapped your predecessor. And he did kidnap me. I was fortunate that it only took the Flash an hour to locate me, but…I cannot allow this to happen again.”

“I got that. Where you wanna start?”

“I think Ms. West would be disappointed if we killed him. Either because she wants the privilege herself, or…”

“Down the hall then. Let Ray pick this tool up?”  
“That sounds adequate.”

~~ * * * ~~

Captain Rip Hunter had hesitated only for a moment when Gideon had informed him of events in Central City circa summer 2016. He was meant to be returning the Legends to their rightful times, thankfully all of them, and returning home, but–there was a child, and Stein had had so much flame in his eyes, anger and steel, and anyone would be a fool to attempt to prevent Leonard Snart from taking down a man who used his status and power to harm a child. Besides, the Flash could not die. So a message had been sent, and now he checked the locks again on the small brig. Ten of the men and women who had assisted in the kidnapping and torture and God alone knew what else, and the general himself, had been taken. The rest had either escaped ( though not for long, given Ray’s theft of the records) or perished.

They had one more stop to make, and then he could go home to his own family.

Rip allowed himself a smile, fingers brushing a pocket watch hung from its chain. There was time.

~~ *** *** ~~~

Wally had only just released “Uncle Basil” from a trembly hug when the doors to the room–not the med bay, Wally had panicked at the sight of it even with Ray there to comfort him, but rather Captain Hunter’s quarters, as they were the largest–opened.

“Wally,” Barry croaked, stumbling forward. It was only Len’s arm that kept him from falling face first, but there was no lack of supporting arms that helped Barry to the bed where Wally sat. Wally tried to leap up to meet him, but he too was drained. Ray hoisted him up easily, and scooted so that Barry could sit.

Barry sat heavily, pulling Wally close. Kendra noticed his shaking and pulled an extra blanket from the foot of the bed, draping it around the both of them

“Thank God,” he murmured. “ Wally, I thought they–I’m so sorry.”  
Wally snuggled closer. “I’m here,” he said simply. It was enough.

Sara shooed people out, but minutes later Stein pushed his way in, Jax and Ray behind him.

“You could do with some food, I’d wager,” the professor gave a wan smile, setting down his offering. Cookies. Wally stuffed two into his mouth and pressed a third at Barry, who took it and the granola bar Ray offered him gratefully. “It won’t be enough, but Dr. Snow will, I think, have a better Idea of what exactly you need. I am sorry, Bartholomew, that we didn’t get you out as quickly as you and Ronald saved me.”

Barry shook his head, then smiled at the glass of juice Jax pushed at him. it soothed his throat some. “ You came in time. Just in time. I can’t thank you enough.”

“Uh-hu.” Wally nodded earnestly. “Thanks, Mr. Fire Angel, Ms. Knife Angel, Uncle Basil, um. Who’re you?” Wally said holding his own cup of juice with both hands, leaning back against Barry, who in turn had shifted to be up against the wall.

“I’m Professor Mar–”

“You can call him Grey,” Jax said, grinning. “But he does the fire stuff too.”

“Oh. Kay. Thanks, Mr. Grey Fire Angel.”.

Martin sighed, but nodded somberly. “ You are welcome, Wallace.”

“No, we gotta use the  codes. I’m Lightning Bug.”


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this did not want to get written and it feels terrible but I hope you like it anyway

Under three minutes from the Waverider touching down saw Barry and Wally being gently shaken awake. It had not been a terribly long trip, but Kendra, keeping watch, couldn’t blame them for falling asleep, the Flash’s long limbs tangled in the blanket and around the toddler. When they’d first learned what had happened, she’d thought Martin Stein was going to have a heart attack or set something on fire. From what she’d seen in the lab room, that horrible woman standing over a tiny child with a knife...it had to have been a hell of a few days. Still, the trip was over and they had family waiting, worried sick, so she laid a hand as softly as she could on Barry’s shoulder.

“Hey, we’re--you’re home.”

Barry jolted awake, literally going tense and clutching at Wally.   
“I won’t let y--Kendra?” His panicked gaze cleared as he seemed to remember. In his arms, Wally stirred.   
“We’re at STAR Labs,” Kendra explained. “I know you’re probably tired, but your team---well, they’ll want to see you’re ok. I know when Carter--wasn’t dead, I didn’t believe it until….” she trailed off. “C’mon.”    
Barry staggered to his feet, Wally clinging to him tightly, arms around his neck. Kendra offered herself as a crutch as Ray popped his head in and zipped a little too quickly to Barry’s other side; Barry flinched.

“Sorry, sorry, I didn’t think--” He winced, but Barry shook his head.   
“It’s ok, Ray. Thank you.”    
Ray nodded, and Wally smiled at him before shoving his head back under Barry’s chin.

  
When at last they disembarked, Sara and the rest of the team keeping a close eye, paranoid to the core for little reason other than it was what had saved their lives, Barry swayed. Iris, Caitlin, and Cisco waited in front of STAR Labs’ door, wearing identical expressions of worry, apprehension, and elation. When she saw her nephew and closest friend, Iris bolted, wordess

She pulled them into a hug, sobbing.   
“Oh thank God I was so worried, I thought you were--that I’d never--oh, thank God.”   
“Auntie Iris!” Wally cried from the middle of the hug, twisting to try to put his arms around her and failing. “You’re squashing me.” Iris pulled back enough for the toddler to grab hold and pull her in close again.   
“I was so worried,” she repeated. “Tell me you’re ok.”

“We’re here.” Barry said, and that was enough. Caitlin and Cisco joined the group hug then, though Caitlin steered it inside.   
“I don’t know what happened, but if you’re up to it, I need to make sure you’re ok,” she said, apologetically, looking at the medbay.   
Seeing the way Wally and Barry both shuddered, she shook her head. “It can wait, if you can manage some food now?” she chewed her lip.

“Yes please, Auntie Caitlin,” Wally said softly. “Uncle Barry said we could have hamburgers.”

“We’ll start with soup. Then I think we can do that,” Caitlin said, relieved. “Um, Cisco--”

“We got it, doc,” Snart drawled, leaving one of the other rooms. “You should really up your security, honestly. You got a kitchen?”

“You cook?”Cisco asked.   
“I dabble. Soup’s not exactly rocket science, and even if it was I got a couple of people who could manage that. which way.” Caitlin pointed, and Snart left, followed by Mick and oddly enough, Jax and Sara.

“Do you trust them with that?” Iris asked. “I mean they did kidn--” she cut herself off as Wally stiffened.

“They saved my life,” Barry said, still dizzy. “They saved Wally.” He blinked, swaying harder, and Cisco shoved a chair under him, one with a large fluffy cushion. “Iris, I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean for any of this to happen, I’m so, so sorry about--about Joe, and…” tears escaped, but it was safe here. Wally gave a small sob, but Iris rocked him gently.

“It wasn’t your fault, none of this was your fault,” Iris assured him. “It was Eiling’s, and when I get my hands on him, he’ll wish I’d let the others burn him.” Barry hadn’t heard such hatred in her voice since--ever. It didn’t scare Wally, though, he just continued to cling like a wet kitten to a warm brick.   
“But--if I’d been more careful, Joe would still be--”   
“Barr, dad’s ok.” Iris realized what he was saying and shook her head. “He’s pissed and he’s on pain meds, but he’s going to be fine. He’s in the med bay, Caitlin had him moved. Crap, Cisco, could you wake him up? He’ll want to see you for himself.”

“But they said, they said Gran’pa was dead, they took me ‘way and yelled and said…” Wally whimpered.

“They were wrong, Lightning Bug. They lied, Wally. Grandpa’s just fine.”

“And you cussed,” he finished.

“I did,” Iris agreed. “I’ll put a whole dollar in the swear jar. Why don’t we get you some clean clothes and some shoes?”

Wally shook his head. “Don’t wanna leave Uncle Barry.”

 

In the end, they pulled out another chair and more fluffy pillows and blankets, but Wally elected to sit on Barry’s lap while they drank soup from Cisco’s mug collection. Joe was helped out into the main room, shaking off the support and walking under his own power, his arm in a sling. He hugged them one armed, and they returned it, getting stronger and stronger with each mug of soup--it was lucky that Snart had apparently gotten practice at cooking for a group.

 

Ray and Cisco took the collar that was still tight against Barry’s neck to pieces, Cisco promising to find a way to counter such a device if anyone ever tried anything again.

“Which they won’t, not after what Iris has planned,” Cisco put in as an afterthought. “She was torn between “Feed him to wild bears” or “make an example of him.” I personally still think we could do both.”   
“I’m sorry I lost the shoes you made me,” Wally cheeped. Cisco shook his head. 

“I’m just glad you’re safe. I can make more shoes, with better trackers this time.”

“But they were  _ lava proof. _ ”

“The new ones can be lava-proof too,” Cisco promised.

 

While Joe and most of the Legends team went to deal with the survivors of the attack on the Facility, arrest warrants and files Ray had recovered in hand, Caitlin and Cisco set to making over one of the offices into a recovery room, pushing two cots together to make a larger bed, since Wally still refused to be separated from either Barry or Iris--not that they’d dream of forcing the issue.

 

Wally was glad to see that “Ms. Knife Angel”, Uncle Basil, and “The bird angels” stayed around. 

“We might as well. Technically, we’re still legally dead, and it looks like you guys could use some bodyguards for a while,” Sara had pointed out as she passed Wally a fourth mug of hot chocolate. Barry was on his fifth.

It was hard to argue that.

The short rest on the Waverider had not really been enough, and soon Barry found himself drifting off again, Iris close by, Wally tucked under his arm, with a small army of friends keeping careful, protective watch.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay! it's over! no one we love is dead!


End file.
